HC finds merit in custodial torture plaint by activists
Times of India | 23 April 2025
123 Kolkata: Calcutta High Court on Tuesday found merit in a custodial torture complaint filed by female activists picked up by West Midnapore Police from in front of Vidyasagar University on March 3. "It was found in the report submitted by the IGP (Murlidhar Sharma) that one lady constable, Kuheli Saha, grabbed the petitioner (Sucharita Das) by the hair, pushed and smacked her," Justice Tirthankar Ghosh observed.
Justice Ghosh then directed the SIT, already set up under the IGP, to register an FIR and transferred the case to the West Midnapore ACJM court, designated by the state as the human rights court. The judge directed the SIT to continue the investigation and instructed the IGP to report to the ACJM court regarding the criminal aspect. The court also directed the IGP to take logistical support from the home secretary, and not the police.
Justice Ghosh "disbelieved" the report submitted by the West Midnapore DSP and the CCTV records placed before the court on the grounds that they didn't mention the incident stated in the IGP report. Justice Ghosh also "disbelieved" the general diary entry 56 of March 3 at the All Women Police Station.
"It was submitted that an offer was given to the arrested in custody to furnish a bail bond. That was in the morning. The bail bond then could have been signed in the morning," Justice Ghosh observed, taking note that the student organisers were released in the dead of night.
Justice Ghosh took note of the directions in the bail bond for production of the accused at a subsequent date. "So, there was a special design in the minds of police authorities," he said, ruling out the state's view that the arrests were preventive.
The court kept the aspect of compensation to itself and allowed the state to file the affidavit in opposition. "Let the affidavit in opposition be kept on record. Let the petitioners file an affidavit in reply to the state affidavit within two weeks," the HC said and scheduled the next hearing in June.
Justice Ghosh held that HC would refer custodial torture cases to state-designated human rights courts